5 markers Flashcards
primary data
-primary data is data that the researcher collects themselves
-they can do this through methods such as interviews or questionnaires
secondary data
-secondary data is data that already exists as the research was previously conducted by someone else
-examples of secondary data include historical documents (qualitative), or previous findings from the ONS (quantitative)
qualitative data
qualitative data is non-numerical data, usually in the form of written text
-methods of gathering qualitative data include: interviews (unstructured, semi-structured, group), and observations (overt, covert, ppt, and non-ppt)
-qualitative data is highly valid as it has high levels of detail, allowing for verstahen
quantitative data
-quantitative data is numerical data, useful for statistical analysis and usually presented in graphs or tables
-methods of gathering quantitative data include: questionnaires, expts (both lab and field), and structured interviews
-quantitative data is easy to analyse and is highly accurate and objective, it allows us to spot trends and correlations within the data collected
questionnaires
-a questionnaire, the most common type of social survey, is a list of predetermined questions, either online or on paper, designed by a researcher, they gather mostly quantitative data
-questionnaires are highly reliable as they are structured and standardised: everyone gets asked the same questions which were prepared in advance by the researcher. They are also highly representative as they usually have a high response rate, creating a bigger sample that is more likely to reflect the target population
social survey
-a social survey is a method of collecting large amounts of data from a large amount of people in a relatively short amount of time (eg. the Census)
-they are usually conducted through questionnaires (or, less commonly, structured interviews)
-they are usually standardised and structured as they are prepared in advance and everyone is asked the same thing, they collect quantitative data
-all of these factors make social surveys a highly reliable method of gathering data
lab expts
-lab exts take place in an artificial and highly controlled environment
-this means that all variables can be controlled and causal relationships can be explored easily, increasing the reliability of the findings
-lab expts are preferred by positivists as they rely on empirical scientific evidence (quantitative data)
-lab expts are also highly reliable as they can be repeated as they will follow a standardised procedure
field expts
-field expts take place in a natural, everyday environment/setting and look to see if changing the IV will impact the DV
-field expts are good for reducing the Hawthorne effect (where ppts change their behaviour because they know they’re being studied) and for being more representative than lab expts as social settings allow for larger groups to be studied
-field expts tend to gather qualitative data (as well as quantitative data) making it highly valid as the data will be rich and detailed
interviews
-an interview is where a researcher directly asks a series of questions to one or more interviewees
-they can be structured, semi-structured, or unstructured, and can be conducted individually or in groups
-the type of interview will impact whether quantitative or qualitative data is gathered
structured interviews
-structured interviews have a rigid interview schedule - a list of questions or topic areas the interviewer wishes to cover
-they are structured and pre-coded questionnaires, which means that the same questions are read to the respondents by the researcher, who records the responses (a formal Q&A session)
-they are highly reliable as they are standardised and can be easily replicated by other researchers. They also gather quantitative data, which is highly accurate and reliable
-liked by Positivists
unstructured interviews
-unstructured interviews give the interviewer complete freedom to vary the questions for each respondent, allowing them to bounce off the respondent’s thoughts and ideas
-they tend to collect qualitative data, which increases the validity of the findings by providing rich, in-depth data, allowing for verstehen. They are also highly ethical as support can be offered to the respondent and sensitive topics can be approached in a respectful manner
-liked by Interpretivists because of high validity
semi-structured interviews
-semi-structured interviews are not as flexile as unstructured interviews, but not as rigid as structured interviews. Each interviews uses the same set of questions, but the interviewer has the freedom to ask respondents further questions to clarify or develop what they have said
-semi-structured interviews are highly ethical as support can be given to the ppt if needed. They are also reliable as they follow standardised questions and are more valid than structured interviews as they can gather more in-depth answers with their further questions
-liked by both Positivists and Interpretivists
group interviews (focus groups)
-group interviews (also called focus groups) involve a group of respondents, rather than just interviewer and interviewee
-the interviewer acts as more of a guide, giving the group topics to talk to each other about, encouraging ppts the discuss topics and issues with one another
-they gather detailed qualitative data, increasing the validity (therefore liked by Interpretivists)
-highly practical: cost and time effective to interview multiple people at once, less researchers needed
sampling techniques
-sampling is a key stage in the process of designing and conducting sociological research. It involves the researcher selecting a smaller group of people from the wider target population to gather data from
-random sampling - everyone in the target population has an equal opportunity of being chosen for the sample (representative)
-non-random sampling - used when interested in a small, specific group of people, the researcher selects who takes part, or a volunteer sample is used (not representative)
probability/simple random sampling (random)
-a number is assigned to each person in the sampling frame, ppts are randomly selected using a random number generator
-this is highly practical as it is the most simple way to produce a large sample
-likely to produce a highly representative sample
